Allo Communications Teams with 180Squared to Launch Microsoft Mediaroom-Powered IPTV Service

Nebraska-based telco, Allo Communications, said Wednesday that it has teamed with 180Squared, a company best known for providing software and integration services for Microsoft's Mediaroom IPTV platform, to launch a Mediaroom-based IPTV service to its customers in western Nebraska (note: last year, Microsoft launched virtualization support for Mediaroom, in a bid to make the platform more cost-effective for smaller operators such as Allo to deploy--see the article published on itvt.com, May 28th, 2009). The service, which is delivered over a fiber network, offers among other things 74 HD channels, remote DVR management, on-screen caller-ID and integration with Allo's voice and Internet services.

Allo's new IPTV network is managed and integrated using 180Squared's v.Allegro solution set, which the latter company bills as offering powerful integration, management and user experience software and the expert services required to quickly plan, deploy and manage a complete IPTV implementation. According to 180Squared, the v.Allegro solution set includes the company's:

• v.Orchestrator Launch Services offering, which it says ensures that service providers receive the necessary support for planning, architecting, integrating and launching their IPTV service.
• v.Maestro IPTV Middleware Integration and Management Platform, which it says provides the critical entry point into a complex IPTV middleware implementation, in order to manage, integrate and monitor multiple disparate B/OSS systems and third-party applications.
• v.Harmonizer Device Provisioning Module, which it says provides multiple methods for activating and provisioning set-top boxes.
• v.Harmonizer Billing Adapter Module, which it says enables the required extraction and auditing of billing events from the IPTV middleware to the billing systems in the formats that the systems require.
• v.Crescendo Caller-ID Application, which it says incorporates on-screen capabilities, call logs and notification management to subscribers.
• v.Crescendo Remote PVR Scheduler Application, which it says allows operators to offer customers remote DVR management from any device.